


You Get Me

by softwylies



Series: Rina week 2020 works [1]
Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: Endgame Ricky Bowen/Gina Porter, F/M, Fluff, Rina Week 2020 (HSM: The Series), Soft Ricky Bowen (HSM: The Series)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-15
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:28:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24194329
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/softwylies/pseuds/softwylies
Summary: When Gina porter gets a ride home from Ricky Bowen after a messy night at the school dance, things take an interesting turn when unexpected feelings and realizations hit them out of nowhere
Relationships: Ricky Bowen & Gina Porter, Ricky Bowen/Gina Porter, gina porter - Relationship
Series: Rina week 2020 works [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1746151
Comments: 4
Kudos: 30





	You Get Me

**Author's Note:**

> As apart of rina week 2020, this is my take on the car scene from episode 5. Thank you so much to Alex for helping me edit and being my motivator I love you

Gina took out her phone to pay for her ticket, she tapped her heels, frustrated as she waited for the teacher to complete her Venmo request. This night had been a disaster, between the failed plan, her blow up with EJ, and Ricky getting in her business, she was now stressed, embarrassed, and ready to leave.

As she got her things and made her way to leave assuring herself that nothing could make her night worse, she stopped at the door realizing EJ was her ride. She quickly took her phone back out and dialed her mom's number, no answer. She stood outside the gym wondering why the world was so against her tonight.

“You look like you could use a ride.” She heard a familiar and unwanted voice say.

“Ricky,” she said rolling her eyes “you do not want to come for me right now, I will clap back.”

He threw his hands up in defense “I come in peace...I wanted to apologize, for Earlier.” 

Gina looked at him angrily as she waited to hear his apology “well, go ahead” 

He looked at her confused “oh that was it actually, the apology.” 

She glared “you suck at apologies Bowen” she replied before she began to walk away, she was suddenly stopped when he grabbed her hand. 

“Gina wait please,” he said, “I really am sorry, who you hang out with, or don't hang out with isn’t any of my business.”

“Then why are you making it your business,” she asked, not understanding why he seemed so interested in her life earlier. 

“Good question, I don't know,” he said sincerely. “It's like I’m an outsider to theatre and you’re like an outsider to east high, I thought we sorta like got each other.” 

“I mean we did until you came for me,” She said, her tone telling him she was still a little upset about the unprovoked attack from him. 

“I know and I really am sorry for that, I was a jerk.” He sighed “there's just been a lot going on in my life lately, at home too things have just been a mess.” 

Gina looked at him, she gained an understanding about his sudden outburst “you're not the only one with home drama” she said sadly remembering the details of her own messed up life. 

“Well, I didn't need to add to yours.” He gave her a sincere look causing a smile to fall on her face. 

“Now that’s an apology Bowen,” Gina said looking down, her cheeks grew warm as she noticed her hand was still in his, Ricky began to blush as well when he noticed their interlocked hands, They quickly let go and laughing awkwardly.

“How about you give me a ride and we can call it even” 

Ricky smiled and nodded his head in agreement. 

Gina picked up her things and waited on Ricky to tell Big Red goodbye.

When he got back they walked outside and got inside his small orange buggy. At first, they rode in awkward silence, that was until Gina had enough.

“Okay nope, sorry I can't do the sitting in silence thing we need music.” 

Ricky laughed and let out a small sigh of relief if he was being honest, the silence was killing him too.

Gina took the aux cord and plugged it into her phone, and began blasting painkiller by Ruel. “Gina who is this?” Ricky asked she turned to him with a shocked look on her face. 

“Ricky, how do you not know Ruel?” Quickly, she took his phone and began adding almost every song on Free Time to a new playlist. 

He glanced over at her “hey what are you doing” he said reaching out to grab his phone back from her. She moved not letting him snatch it away from her.

“No, I'm making you a playlist, it's unacceptable that you haven't heard Ruel ALSO focus on driving!” 

Ricky let out a laugh, shaking his head at her antics who knew she wasn't so serious 

After adding all the songs from the album, along with some others she thought he’d like, she saved the playlist and went to put his phone back down. she paused when she realized he was back to focusing on the road. So she took advantage of Ricky being distracted and opened his camera to spam his phone with selfies. Once she felt accomplished She quickly laid his phone down before he could notice and turned up the music, it blasted as she sang along. 

“I got front row seats for the park side livin” Ricky could hear her voice softly under the loud music, he smirked as an idea popped into his head. 

He clicked the mute button while she was belting out the chorus. 

“Cause you’re my painkiller when my brain gets bitter you keep me clo-” 

Gina stopped after she noticed the music cut out and she had been singing out loud. Embarrassed, she looked over at Ricky to see him in a fit of laughter and hit his arm “it's not funny Bowen” she said feigning annoyance. 

“I don't know what you mean,” he said innocently between laughs. “Seriously Gina you have an amazing voice” 

she looked down trying to hide the forming smile and buried her face in her hands. 

“I don’t like singing in front of people” 

He looked at her in disbelief “Gina you do musical theatre how can you not like singing in front of people?”

She chuckled “It's different when I'm on stage, I don’t know how to explain it, it's just easier.”

He was shocked at her words; he didn’t know how someone who came off so confident was also so unbelievably shy.

After a while more of goofing off, eventually, he pulled into her driveway, turning off the car and the music shutting off with it.

“So this is where I live, ta-da,” Gina said, “let me guess, you were expecting an iron gate and gargoyles.”

Ricky looked at her and chuckled softly “kinda” he joked “no, you’re not that scary” 

Gina couldn’t help but smile, she was so used to having every person she meets be intimidated by her in some way, so she liked--no--loved that he could see through the guard she put up.

“Also I kind of owe you a thank you, you’re kind of the reason I stayed with the show,” he said looking up at her with a smile. “What you said at the skatepark, you really set me straight,” 

“Well I'm glad you stayed, It suits you” she responded with a warm smile. 

They sat in the car and talked for a while, discussing their lives, relationship problems, the events of the dance. They took turns talking while the other just listened, letting out feelings that were being held in for so long, they just sorta, got each other. “Try moving five schools in seven years,” Gina said to him, 

He gave her a worried look “how are you holding up with that?” A warm feeling overtook her as she heard his question, no one had really asked her that before, no one cared enough.

“Honestly not the best, I don't usually let myself get comfortable in places because just when things are going great and I get used to a change-”

She was cut off by him finishing her sentence “something else changes?” it was like he had read her mind 

“Yeah exactly. It's why I walk around with my guard up and never really let anyone get close to me.” 

Ricky's face dropped “I get it, you don't want to have to go through losing people over and over again.” 

Gina had an unfamiliar feeling bubble up inside her, she never really had anyone understand her the way Ricky did,

It made her start to think about things, it made her start to think about them.

Her mind started trailing back to their moment in the hallway outside of the dance, she thought about how her hand had fit perfectly into his like that spot was made just for her, she thought about how he scrunched his nose a little when he blushed, she thought about how he smelled so nice and definitely went through at least forty sprays of his cologne before coming to the dance.

She suddenly was overwhelmed by all of these thoughts and new feelings hitting her at once, out of nowhere. Gina tried her best to snap out of it. To ignore the new emotions clouding her head, no Gina Porter doesn't fall for people she thought to herself, but Ricky had some sort of power over her, it was almost as if he had her under some kind of spell.

“Gina? Gigi you okay?” she snapped back into reality, not realizing she had wandered off for so long, she almost didn’t notice the name she heard him say. “What’d you call me?” She asked him, she heard him the first time, but she wanted to hear it again.

“Um, I said Gigi... I thought it could be like your nickname?” Gina tried to hold a serious expression, just to mess with him, but it quickly formed into a big smile “Gigi, I love it.”

Ricky smiled letting out a sigh of relief, he was happy to know she liked his new name for her. “Good because that’s what I’m gonna call you from now on, also about what you said-- I understand the fear of losing people especially since you move so much but I promise you, I’m not going anywhere….you’re stuck with me Gigi!” 

“Thank you….” gina said, as a ghost of a smile started to form on her face “ you don’t know how much that means to me.”

He grinned as his gaze stayed on her, the happy expression on her face made him feel good. Almost like her happiness was contagious...if she was happy he was.

A comfortable silence then overtook them as he began to study her. He noticed how cute she looked when she was deep in thought, how her curls framed her face perfectly, and how those same curls always smelled of coconuts probably from her hair product. He thought

His thoughts were cut off by the sudden and pleasant realization that he hadn’t thought about Nini once the entire night. 

Maybe it was because he enjoyed being in Gina’s company, he couldn't help but smile as he looked back on their night. Suddenly the same feelings clouding Gina’s head were making their way into his. 

He thought about how she was so excited to introduce him to new music, about how amazing her voice was, and how she was shy about sharing it. He thought about how he could probably sit and talk to her for hours and never get bored. He thought about how he had learned so much about her in one night, just being in her presence felt so right. He loved how they really did get each other. 

Gina was the one to break the silence “Thank you for the ride, Ricky, you actually made my night a lot better and I really appreciate it.” she said turning to him, 

He looked back up at her and took note of the space between them, well, the lack of that is. “Of course Gigi, anytime and I had fun too.” he smiled staring into her chocolate brown eyes, the moonlight was shining on her face, and she looked so incredibly beautiful to him.

Gina watched as his eyes kept making their way toward her lips, she noticed the pleading look in his eyes, she tried her best to fight it to not give in to these feelings for him that she didn’t even understand. Her brain was screaming at her to stop but once again her mind was no match for whatever spell Ricky Bowen had over her. 

She slowly let her eyes wander to his lips. Ricky noticed how she started to mirror him and immediately leaned in, she followed along, her breath hitching in her throat at the proximity. there was almost no space left between them, Gina felt his warm breath hit her lips, it drove her crazy.  
She was ready to go for it, to give in and do what she so desperately wanted to but— to their dismay, she was interrupted by the sound of her phone ringing.

Her face dropped as she looked down to see who had called her, she almost jumped, her eyes widening as she saw her mom’s contact name pop up on the screen along with the time that read ‘12:30.’ she didn’t realize how long they spent talking in his car, she quickly gathered up her things in a hurry

“I am so sorry, I’ll facetime you later thank you for the ride!”

His smile showed off his blushed cheeks “I’ll be looking forward to it.” 

Just as Gina was about to shut his door she quickly got back in, leaning forward and giving him a soft and lingering kiss on his cheek “goodnight Richard” she said with a smile and rushed inside her house. 

He waited for her to get inside safely before leaning back and letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding in. Ricky couldn't stop smiling he knew it was just a simple kiss on the cheek, but he also knew it was almost so much more, the simple gesture was so mind-consuming and personal to him. 

He was eager to get home to take Gina up on her facetime offer, but just as he was about to start the car, he heard the ding of a notification “iCloud Updated: 17 new photos” He logged into his phone to see what photos it was talking about, 17 cute selfies of Gina in his car graced his vision these have to be from when she took my phone he thought to himself. He didn't delete a single one— instead, He opened up his messages and sent her a text 

definitely using these on your birthday

she quickly responded 

DON'T YOU DARE BOWEN.

He laughed at her response and went to change her contact name “my Gigi” he whispered softly to himself. 

Ricky eagerly pressed play on the playlist she made for him, then finally put his phone down. He backed out of Gina's driveway and made his way home.


End file.
